Abstract
A substantial consensus has emerged in development circles that the reason why some countries are rich and others poor is largely a reflection of the quality of their institutions – political, bureaucratic, and legal – and that countries with seriously dysfunctional institutions cannot expect to pursue a successful long-term trajectory of economic and social development. Many studies support this consensus, but institutional reform efforts for developed countries have resulted in mixed to weak results; many of these efforts have failed, for example, to establish a robust rule of law to protect the rights of citizens, publicly accountable political regimes, a meritocratic, noncorrupt, and efficient bureaucracy, and an independent media. Reportedly up to 60% of donor-assisted reforms have yielded no measurable increase in government effectiveness. It is inferred from this disappointing result that institutional transplants are often ineffective, and the path dependence, caused by accretions of the particularities of given countries’ histories, cultures, politics, ethnic and religious make-up, and geography leaves each country, for the most part, “to write its own history”.
UNDP Human Development Index (2019)
Top 10 Norway Ireland Switzerland Hong Kong, China (SAR) Iceland Germany Sweden Australia Netherlands Denmark |
UNDP Human Development Index (2019)
Bottom 10 Niger Central African Republic Chad Burundi South Sudan Mali Burkina Faso Sierra Leone Mozambique Eritrea |
UN Happiness Index (2017–2019)
Top 10 Finland Denmark Switzerland Iceland Norway Netherlands Sweden New Zealand Austria Luxembourg |
UN Happiness Index (2017–2019)
Bottom 10 Afghanistan South Sudan Zimbabwe Rwanda Central African Republic Tanzania Botswana Yemen Malawi India |
Worldwide Governance Indicators:
Government Effectiveness (2019) Top 10 Singapore Switzerland Denmark Finland Andorra Norway Sweden Netherlands Hong Kong Luxembourg |
Worldwide Governance Indicators:
Government Effectiveness (2019) Bottom 10 South Sudan Yemen, Rep. Somalia Haiti Libya Eritrea Central African Republic Syrian Arab Republic Comoros Venezuela |
Worldwide Governance Indicators:
Voice Accountability (2019) Top 10 Norway Sweden Finland Denmark New Zealand Netherlands Switzerland Luxembourg Canada Belgium |
Worldwide Governance Indicators:
Voice Accountability (2019) Bottom 10 Korea Dem. Rep. Eritrea Turkmenistan Syrian Arab Republic South Sudan Equatorial Guinea Somalia Tajikistan Lao PDR Yemen, Rep. |
Worldwide Governance Indicators:
Political Stability and Absence of Violence (2019) Top 10 Greenland Iceland Liechtenstein Andorra Monaco Singapore New Zealand Cayman Island Anguilla Luxembourg |
Worldwide Governance Indicators:
Political Stability and Absence of Violence (2019) Bottom 10 Yemen, Rep. Syrian Arab Republic Afghanistan Libya Iraq South Sudan Somalia Pakistan Central African Republic Mali |
Worldwide Governance Indicators:
Regulatory Quality (2019) Top 10 Singapore Hong Kong New Zealand Australia Netherlands Finland Norway Sweden Germany Canada |
Worldwide Governance Indicators:
Regulatory Quality (2019) Bottom 10 Korea Dem. Rep. Venezuela Libya Eritrea Somalia South Sudan Turkmenistan Syrian Arab Republic Sudan Yemen, Rep. |
Worldwide Governance Indicators:
Rule of Law (2019) Top 10 Finland Norway Switzerland Sweden Denmark New Zealand Austria Singapore Netherlands Luxembourg |
Worldwide Governance Indicators:
Rule of Law (2019) Bottom 10 Somalia Venezuela Syrian Arab Republic South Sudan Libya Congo, Dem. Rep. Yemen, Rep. Central African Republic Iraq Afghanistan |
Worldwide Governance Indicators:
Control of Corruption (2019) Top 10 New Zealand Singapore Finland Sweden Luxembourg Denmark Norway Netherlands Switzerland Liechtenstein |
Worldwide Governance Indicators:
Control of Corruption (2019) Bottom 10 South Sudan Equatorial Guinea Somalia Syrian Arab Republic Yemen, Rep. Libya Korea, Dem. Rep. Congo, Dem. Rep. Turkmenistan Venezuela |
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Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Articles
- The Rule of Law as an Emergent Social Norm: Evidence from Qualitative Research in Russia
- Negotiating the Intellectual Property Protocol under the Agreement Establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area: Priorities and Opportunities for Nigeria
- The Rise of Germany in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries and Sustaining Democracy
- The Good Governance Quandary: The Elusive Search for Role Models
- Reviewing the Indonesian Anticorruption Court: A Cost-Effective Analysis
- The Constitutionality of Compulsory Land Acquisition in Vietnam: Issues and Recommendations
- Extractive Constitutions: Constitutional Change and Development Paths in Latin America
- Notes
- On Ramseyer’s Response to the Critics of “Contracting for Sex in the Pacific War”
Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Articles
- The Rule of Law as an Emergent Social Norm: Evidence from Qualitative Research in Russia
- Negotiating the Intellectual Property Protocol under the Agreement Establishing the African Continental Free Trade Area: Priorities and Opportunities for Nigeria
- The Rise of Germany in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries and Sustaining Democracy
- The Good Governance Quandary: The Elusive Search for Role Models
- Reviewing the Indonesian Anticorruption Court: A Cost-Effective Analysis
- The Constitutionality of Compulsory Land Acquisition in Vietnam: Issues and Recommendations
- Extractive Constitutions: Constitutional Change and Development Paths in Latin America
- Notes
- On Ramseyer’s Response to the Critics of “Contracting for Sex in the Pacific War”